Childhood friend
by Poddyful
Summary: She was just standing there, casually dressed, with her hands in her pockets.Gaara's eyes couldn't leave her. It was unbelievable. It had been seven years...GaaxOC
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: mine not Naruto is…

She was just standing there, casually dressed, with her hands in her pockets. Gaara's eyes couldn't leave her. It was unbelievable. It had been seven years…

_**Seven years ago…**_

He was sitting on a swing, watching a gang of people play football. Suddenly one of them kicked the ball too high and it was stuck. Gaara left the swing and used his sand to get the ball down for them. When he turned around he flinched. Those eyes again…

"Aaahhh! It's Gaara…Gaara of the Sand! RRRUUUNNNNN!" they yelled. Gaara panicked.

"No! Wait!" he reached out for them. The sand automatically grabbed one of the boys…and then everything stopped.

"Gaara-sama, that's enough, eh?"

"Yashamaru…?" Gaara said, his eyes reflecting the loneliness that he had. The other boys hurried off.

"You should go home now, Gaara-sama…" Yashamaru said quietly, and left. Gaara slowly trudged back to the swing. The sun was slowly setting. Then, someone behind him coughed. He turned around. A girl about his age was standing beside a tree. She walked over to him.

"Ano…can I have my ball back please? The idiots stole it off me" she said. He stared fearfully into her eyes and cheered up a bit. No sign of fear. He held the ball up to her.

She grinned and took it. Gaara was shocked. This one wasn't a fake one, it seemed genuine. He had so much experience in this field that he could tell. It was an authentic smile. He smiled tentatively back. She came and leant on the pole.

"What's your name?" she asked him. Gaara hesitated. She would almost definitely run away if she knew who he was. The girl cocked her head.

"Oh, you must be Gaara. Sabaku no Gaara, right?" she asked brightly. Gaara's mouth dropped. She isn't scared of him! He nodded.

"Watashi wa Ayako" she said confidently. "So…why are you sitting here by yourself?" she asked. Gaara looked down.

"No one likes me…" he answered. Ayako blinked. She sat down beside him and patted his arm. Gaara was even more shocked. His sand had not reacted.

"W…why don't you run away?" he asked. Ayako was even more puzzled.

"Am I supposed to run away?" she said. Then, spotting Gaara's expression, she added "Don't worry, I won't leave. Besides, I like you" Gaara's jaw dropped through the ground. She liked him…she liked him…

"I…I like you too" he said almost inaudibly- for the first time, experiencing the words. Her words echoed around his head. She beamed at him. Then she turned to look at the sun.

"The sunset's very beautiful, ne?" she said quietly. Gaara also looked up.

"Hn…" he never really noticed the sunsets or sunrises…or the sun most of the time in the first place. Now he squinted at the golden circle and appreciated how stunning a sunset was.

"Where do you live?" Gaara asked Ayako shyly, after the sun had fully gone down. Ayako fumbled in her pocket for a small lamp. She lit it and put it in front of them.

"Um…anywhere, it doesn't matter, I don't have a home or a family" she told him cheerfully. He was surprised. How could she be so happy without a family or home? Then another lamp

Came bobbing along. It was Yashamaru.

"Gaara-sama, it's time to go home" Gaara nodded and stood up. Yashamaru frowned at the girl but said nothing. Gaara followed after his guardian.

"Oyasuminasai Gaara-san!" Ayako said. Gaara turned around and waved.

She was turning around…Gaara pushed Kankuro in front of him. He was fairly sure she didn't know him. Kankuro looked back at his brother.

"What-"

"Shut up and stay there" Gaara snapped harshly. Kankuro flinched and turned around. Then Kankuro saw the reason Gaara had shoved him in front. The girl from when he was little. He could remember her face. The little girl that was always dragging Gaara around. Frankly, he used to be paralyzed with shock every time he saw Gaara smile or skip. But it was only with the girl that he did those kind of things. But then one day everything changed.

_**Flashback **_

"_So…you had to kill me…"_

"_No, I had a choice…and I chose to do it"_

"_NO!" a little girl about the same age as Gaara screamed. _

_Everyone turned around. She crawled towards Gaara. Gaara's eyes widened._

"_Ayako! What…who did this to you!" Gaara asked, horrified. She was covered in grazes, burns and a whole lot of other injuries. She jerked her head towards Yashamaru. Gaara's eyes darkened. _

"_Gaara…I'll be banished from Suna by tonight…promise me…promise me that you won't forget me…ne?" she whispered. Gaara nodded weakly. She was disappearing out of his life forever…tonight. _

_Suddenly a kunai flew past them and grazed Ayako's cheek. She cringed and smiled, then slowly stood up._

"_A…Ayako?" _

"_Sayonara, Gaara-chan" she said, smiling at the suffix she added to his name. She looked towards the assassin. A dark look appeared on her face and she took out a kunai. _

**_Kage bunshin no jutsu!_**

_The kunais flew straight into their target. Yashamaru. Ayako turned around, smiled at Gaara, gave him a thumbs up, then disappeared._

_**End Flashback **_

Temari noticed it too. She glanced at Gaara out of the corner of her eye. His expression was unreadable. She looked back at the girl. It was definitely her. The cut on her left cheek is the exact same mark from the kunai (a/n don't ask me why it's still there from seven years ago…it just is..).

"Hey Ayako!" someone from the crowd yelled.

Lol I'll just leave it there…please review :3


	2. Chapter 2

chapter two

Everyone looked over. Gaara's eyes were narrowing.

"Oh hi Naruto!" she replied. Gaara growled and turned around.

"Temari, Kankuro, we're going" he said, his voice barely audible. Temari and Kankuro hung back for a bit, but then followed him. They walked down a quiet lane. The tension was so thick you needed lightning edge to cut it. Temari decided to break the silence.

"Gaara, where are we staying today?" she asked. Gaara ignored her. Kankuro answered after he saw his brother's reaction.

"The Hyuugas invited us to stay over for our visit" he told her. The user of the fan nodded.

"So where are we going now?" Kankuro asked this time to no one in particular. No one answered. He sweatdropped and shut up. He would see where they are going when they reach it.

It turned out (as older siblings expected) to be the Hyuuga house. A young girl came to answer their calls. She seemed surprised but led them in after a polite greeting.

"Kazekage-sama, your room is down the hall all the way to the right. Temari-san, your room is down the hall and just turn right at the first turn, and Kankuro-san your room is on the right of Temari-san's. Please enjoy your stay and feel free to go anywhere in this house except occupied bedrooms, which will have a sign saying who's in there" Hanabi said, and left.

The three went into their rooms. Gaara noted how neat everything was. After a quick inspection he went out and wandered around the halls. First room…empty…second room…empty…third room…Ayako Makura…fourth room…wait! Ayako…Makura? He did a double take. She was going to live here. Now he was never going to get her out of his mind. He went to the main room in the house and knocked. This time the girl's father answered.

"Kazekage-sama, to what do I owe the pleasure of your presence?" he asked politely.

"Your daughter said that the occupied rooms will have the owner's name on the door. I wanted to request that my siblings names and mine will not be made public. Just 'occupied' or something will do" Gaara answered just as politely.

"I will make sure that everything goes as you want, Kazekage-sama"

Gaara turned around and went back into his room. In a short amount of time, it was dark. Loud voices and laughter filled up the peaceful silence that had hung in the air a couple minutes ago. Someone knocked on his door. He looked over at the silhouette made by the moon.

"What is it, Temari" he asked. She opened the door and shut it quietly behind her. She was wearing a blouse and a miniskirt, different form the one she usually wears. It was hard to tell the colour but Gaara didn't care. He looked questioningly up at her.

She opened her mouth and then closed it, chewing her bottom lip. It was a sign that she was either hesitant, nervous, worried or something of the sort- something that Gaara had being quick to notice when he was little. He waited as patiently as he could. Then when she still didn't talk, Gaara spoke up.

"If it's about her, than forget it. I've already dealt with it" he said quietly.

Temari looked at Gaara, then went over and hugged him. Gaara tensed up, and then relaxed.

"What was that for?" he asked when Temari had let go. Temari smiled at him.

"You looked so unhappy, and that's what sisters are for!" she answered. Then she left. Gaara felt a bit elated. He got up off the bed and opened up the window a little bit. Then he saw her- Ayako. Her dark brown hair blowing in the wind.

She was wearing an attractive light blue and mauve kimono. She was standing next to the pole outside her room, looking up at the moon. Gaara was transfixed at her image…until she turned around. The sand nin shut the window quickly. He wasn't sure if she saw him or not, but he didn't open the window again.

Ayako was stunned. Did she just see…_him_? Gaara? She couldn't be sure, but she thought that she saw a flash of red hair. She scowled to herself. Red hair shouldn't be that unusual. Sakura even had pink hair! She had only come here recently; there could be a lot of people who she didn't know with red hair. Plus Gaara was a sand ninja, there's a chance that he's in Suna right now. She shook her head. The moon was bright tonight. Then she noticed that Mars was bright too. She bit her lip, putting two and two together. When she was little she began watching the stars every night. Then she found a pattern and began reading the stars. Mars and then the moon…that meant…

That's it for today! I take so long updating…T.T…please review!


	3. Chapter 3

I'm sorry I haven't updated so long! I haven't had time to do it these days for some reason (gets hit by sharp things from readers). But here's the next chapter-

Oh and disclaimer (gets hit with even more sharp things from readers): I don't own…_sob_…Naruto…_sniff_…

She twisted her hands nervously. Well, she guessed she was right, then, if she read it correctly. But why is Gaara here? She trudged slowly back to her room and soon fell asleep.

Gaara made sure that Ayako wasn't outside before he jumped onto the roof. Then he thought about it. Why was he avoiding her? The answer crashed straight into his mind.

**_Because you don't want her to see you like this…_**

_What do you mean? _He asked himself irritably

_**Well, for one, you have a ridiculous tattoo on your head**_

…

_**And maybe it's the way you are now…so different from when you were little, huh?**_

_Am I…?_

_**Hn…**_

Gaara snorted and looked up at the moon. It was really round tonight. And bright. He wondered if Ayako could read the planets- she seemed the type. There weren't any stars but clouds occasionally floated over the moon, creating flickering shadows over the village.

"Who's there?" Gaara suddenly asked. Someone did a back flip and landed gracefully next to Gaara.

"I thought you would be here" Temari smiled. Gaara's hand relaxed. He didn't have his gourd and he was pretty lucky it wasn't someone else. The girl sat down with much less grace. Gaara ignored the loud 'thump' that could probably wake the whole house if they weren't in deep enough sleep. Gaara noted what she was wearing was different yet again. What was it with his sister and changing clothes every few hours?

She was wearing a light yellow shirt that clung tightly to her body and a purple-blue miniskirt. Gaara looked back at the moon as though his sibling wasn't there.

Temari looked at the moon too. It reminded her of something, but she couldn't remember. Moon cake? They had moon cake on the way back (Gaara excepted) but she didn't think that was it. Then it clicked. The Makura girl. Why it reminded Temari of her was a mystery, and Temari soon forgot about it.

Gaara looked back around at his sister when he heard another loud 'thump'. She had fallen asleep on the cold, hard tiles of the Hyuuga house roof. He watched her for a couple of minutes to see if she would wake up and go back inside. After a while she began snoring lightly. Gaara then chose to ignore her and they stayed like that for the rest of the night.

Ayako opened her eyes, closed them, and groaned. A migraine. Yep, exactly what she needed first thing in the morning. She turned to the window and fell silent. The whole place was as quiet as a tomb. Normally she would have been happy that it was peaceful and stuff but today it filled her ears with a shrill pitched sound and just made her migraine worse. She slipped out of her bed and started performing her morning solutions.

Temari woke up in a similar fashion. She rolled over and gave a small yelp. Gaara looked over at her and then stood up. She was _finally_ awake. He had considered poking her but, as Kankuro once told him, 'girls prefer to be woken up by a more romantic way'. Gaara decided that he should just wait for her to get up. He had no intentions of 'waking her up in a romantic way'. He looked over the halls to make sure that no one was there before he jumped down and went into his room. Temari jumped down after him and went the opposite direction.

Kankuro noticed how the tension in his brother had gone up again and how Temari a bit less talkative than usual. Maybe it was just his imagination. Then a flash of long, brown hair caught his eyes. Or maybe not.

Ayako yawned. Today wasn't anything interesting. She'd go and buy something for breakfast and then maybe go and watch team seven practice. Kakashi sensei said that they would all be there at eight o'clock sharp. It was now half past seven, which gave her two and a half hours to get breakfast etc. She vaguely wondered why he was never on time when she bumped into someone.

Please review!


	4. Chapter 4

"Uwah! Ittai…" she looked up. A pair of cold black eyes met her brown ones, and she visibly gulped.

"I…uh…yo!" she laughed nervously. The young Uchiha looked away and continued on his way to the bridge. Ayako rubbed her head and started going to Ichiraku's Ramen Stand.

It wasn't until she sat down that she remembered what woke her up. The headache. How on earth did she get a headache? She began counting on her fingers. The window was closed at night…yep, the door was closed at night…yep, she didn't kick off her blankets today…yep (not that she usually does…). Then she realised that she was trying to think of reasons for colds. She grimaced.

_There's logic in that! You get a headache when you get a cold, because of fevers…GAH! I'm confusing myself…_

Then the reason crashed into her head. Gaara. Ok, so there is a possibility that he is here in Konoha and that he was also coincidentally living in the Hyuuga house. For some reason he either coincidentally shut the window and turned around every time she saw him, or he just didn't want to see her. She hoped it wasn't the latter. He might be on a mission or something, and that's why he came to Konoha, or maybe it was because he was accompanying his sister here to buy something they didn't have in the Hidden Sand, and was so focused that he never noticed her.

Or she could just be wrong on the whole damn thing, so here she was, back on square one.

Ayako was interrupted from her thoughts when her bowl of ramen was placed right under her nose. She thanked the young lady in front of her politely and quickly finished it. She then looked at her watch. Only fifteen minutes had passed. She paid and then started wondering around the streets.

She froze. A flash of red was making it's way towards the other end of the streets. She ran after it.

"Um…uh…wait! Please!" she yelled, pushing her way through the crowd.

"Oi! Please! Stop walking! Can't you see that a little girl is trying to catch up with you!" she shouted across the heads of the crowd as she bounced up and down on her feet, waving her hands.

After a few minutes, she finally caught up. She put a hand on the red-head's shoulder. He turned around.

"What?" he asked, slightly confused. She gulped. Not Gaara.

"Uh…sorry, wrong person!" she apologized, humiliated. She ran off in another direction, aware of the raised eyebrows coming not only from the red head behind her, but also the entire street on her right.

Another gulp.

A blush.

A squeal…as a hand landed on her head.

"EEyak! What the He…he…he…uh…eh! Kakashi-sensei!" she exclaimed.

"Yup…what were you doing? I thought it was a herd of elephants thundering down the main street " he said, the twinkle in his eyes betraying the blank expression on his face. Ayako blushed.

"Oi!" she yelled, playfully punching the silver haired Jounin, who stopped the attack easily with one hand.

"I thought I told you to meet us at eight" he said. Ayako looked up at him defiantly.

'That's right, you did, I just figured that you'd be…late" she finished. Kakashi nodded.

"Uh huh…you're right, I was planning to be…see you later" he said, vanishing with a loud 'poof'

Ayako swore as loud as she could without drawing attention, and started to wander around again, this time taking a much less crowded street. Little did she know that a pair of teal eyes had followed her since the start of this chapter.

"Kakashi sensei is late again!" Naruto whined, punching a nearby tree in frustration.

"Che. The day he is on time, the sky will crack open, angels will appear, and pigs will grow green wings and fly around doing kage bunshins around the place." Sasuke snorted.

Sakura and Naruto both whipped around to stare at him with looks nothing less than awe on their faces. Sasuke's eyebrow flew up.

"What."

After several unsuccessful attempts of trying not to look like goldfish, Naruto finally spoke up.

"Oh…my…gawd…Sasuke…" he managed. The young Uchiha's irritation grew.

"What?" he repeated with more force than he had hoped.

"You…you…did you just crack a joke?" Naruto finished disbelievingly. Sasuke rolled his eyes.

"Hn."

The conversation promptly ended when the trio was suddenly interrupted by a flurry of sand…


	5. Chapter 5

O.M.G I hope I didn't lose all of my readers! School has been busy, I swear!

On a side note, I can only update during the holidays…

Three eyes traced back to where the sand came from…

"Kakashi-sensei, you're late again!"

Sasuke looked around, frowning. Sand? Realization kicked up. It was just windy today, after all…

He was getting suspicious of the feeling of foreboding, but waved it off as him being paranoid.

Kakashi's cheerful voice snapped him out of his thoughts.

"Right, today you are going to be doing a low C-rank mission" Kakashi physically smiled as he got his automatic groan.

"What is it, Kakashi-sensei?" asked Sakura, fighting the urge to stick something sharp through the middle of the silver –haired jounin's oesophagus.

"Well, you are-"

Kakashi was cut off as something flashed past him and took a seat next to team seven, leaving a trail of dust flying behind her.

"Aya-chan!"

"Ayako!"

"Hn"

"Hi everybody!" Ayako greeted back with equal amount of enthusiasm, save for the last one "So, what's on today?"

Kakashi resumed talking

"As I was saying, we have a C-rank mission today. An old lady-"

Here the collective groans were heard again. What the hell was it with old ladies and losing things?

"An old lady has lost not only her two cats, but four dogs and two lorikeets…in the forest of death. I understand that they are quite vicious. She even included a list of victims and what happened to them for each pet…ara…how charming… rabies, AIDS, broken bones…"

Team seven plus Ayako visibly paled.

"Um…are we allowed to reje-"

"Team seven, you have until sunset. Go!"

And with that, the former Anbu disappeared in a cloud of smoke.

Naruto cursed him to hell and back, hoping that he was stuck there for the rest of eternity, before strolling off.

"Come on, let's go" he yelled. Everybody followed him.

Kankurou couldn't tear his eyes away. Wow. It was…so beautiful. All white and pure looking and…

"Kankurou, stop gawking at the ice-cream stand, you're making the man nervous"

Gaara snapped.

Kankurou closed his mouth and wiped his on his arm. He then tore his eyes away with some difficulty and noted that the man who was selling ice-creams did, indeed, look like he was about to wet his pants. He gulped and hurried to follow his younger brother.

Gaara was soon having second thoughts as he spotted someone walking towards what he remembered was the place for the second part of the chuunin exam.

"Kankurou, go and do whatever you want, take Temari with you. Don't cause any trouble"

Kankurou was feeling mixed emotions as he rushed back off to the ice-cream stand, with Temari not far behind.

Gaara mentally snorted. Childish idiot.

But now was not the time to think about those things. The easiest to follow would be the Haruno girl, since she had bright pink hair.

Latching onto that thought, he started his trailing.

Sasuke stopped. What the hell was that nagging feeling? It was starting to really bother him. His eyes darted around nervously. If only he had a Byakugan, which would have been the most useful bloodline limit at this point.

Ayako moved closer to him. "Yeah I know, I can feel it too…"

Sasuke nodded once and looked over at the blond and pinkie, who were shrieking loudly at each other. He sighed in annoyance and rubbed his temple.

After a few minutes, they finally arrived at the Forest of Death. They looked around, wondering how to get in.

"Uh…maybe we can climb the walls?" Ayako suggested. Naruto cheered and walked up to the gates, sure that he would be able to climb up.

He soon realised that he and Ayako needed to learn how to read warning signs, as his hair, if it hadn't defied all laws of gravity yet, it sure had now. In addition to that, said hair had also turned black. Naruto hobbled back to his team, trying to shake off the after effects of the electric shock.

The famous Uchiha smirk fanned out across Sasuke's face and Sakura burst out laughing. Ayako rubbed the back of her head sheepishly.

"erm…woops?" she said apologetically.

"it's ok Aya- chan" Naruto answered happily, joining in with the laughing.

Gaara's stomach burned. _Aya-chan?_ That damn blond. He is going to pay so bad if that name ever came out of his mouth again.

A flash of movement caught his eye. It was a dark shadow in the forest. Someone was in there. The Uchiha had noticed too. Slowly, Sasuke's eyes flickered over and settled on his own. Gaara glared back slightly defiantly. The Uchiha scowled, then motioned for his team mates to jump over the fence.

Naruto loudly announced how stupid they were for not thinking of it earlier, which had started a loud argument. Sasuke's eyes never flicked back to his.

Suddenly, without warning, the dark shadow jumped in front of the team, slashing at the girls, knocking Sakura unconscious and slamming Ayako into a tree. Naruto had immediately done his 'Kage Bunshin' and they were forming a large circle around the large shadow. Sasuke activated his Sharingan and drew up a chidori. Both were useless. The shadow formed a light thread of chakra and slashed at the two boys, whose fate rendered the same as Sakura's.

The shadow turned around and started drawing on Ayako. She bit back a scream and cowered away. This idiot just HAD to attack on the day she didn't bring any of her fighting equipments. The shadow took out a sword…and suddenly a blur appeared before Ayako's eyes…

Hi everyone! I'm back!...

- -"

Excuse my lack of a abilities to write good fighting scenes... ho...lawd..._sob_...

Hope you enjoyed reading this chapter…


	6. Chapter 6

…

Mmph…well,…in case anyone doesn't remember what this story was about, it is the one where the sand siblings were invited over to Konoha, and they stayed at the Hyuuga place, where Gaara met his 'childhood friend' , Ayako Makura.

* * *

Even before Gaara was born, he was hated. The villagers hated him, his grandparents hated him, his father hated him, and even his uncle grew tired of him after a matter of only a few years.

And he gave himself into that hate, and was soon swallowed up in the darkness of hatred, unable to escape.

Ayako helped him escape.

Ayako was a precious person.

And if anyone dared attack his precious people, he will never forgive them.

Gaara felt livid inside, even as he calmly fought the man, The Uchiha and the Uzumaki having been wiped out by a few kage bunshins. His face was expressionless.

Ayako was currently backed up against the tree, her eyes wide.

What had happened to Gaara? He didn't used to be like this! She was scared. Of a childhood friend. Tears welled up in her eyes.

Gaara's eyes were cold- he showed no remorse even as his hands splayed out.

"Sabaku Taisou"

His killing intent never wavered as his hands fisted tightly, nails digging into his skin.

The man exploded.

Ayako screamed.

Naruto's vision wavered slightly, before swimming back into focus. Who screamed? His eyes blurred again before what he saw before him registered. What he registered stunned him.

Ayako had her mouth wide open, an ear-splitting scream filling up the area- as Sabaku no Gaara advanced slowly towards her.

The blonde flicked into action.

"OI! YOU BASTARD! GET AWAY FORM AYAKO-CHAN!" he yelled, effectively waking up the other two.

Sasuke's brain functioned immediately, hurling a couple of fuuma shuriken, kunais, and explosive tags at Gaara-to no effect.

The weapons fell harmlessly to the ground, the sand retracting.

Ayako finally stopped screaming, though frightened tears fell down her cheeks. Gaara's face was blank, but his eyes betrayed him- it was filled with hurt, and the dejection that was piled up all these years exploded out in one massive wave.

He collapsed to the floor, clutching his head- tears slipping down his cheeks as well and fist clenched. The maniacal aura and unstable killing intent froze Sakura to the spot, and Sasuke and Naruto were circling carefully around him.

After a while, he calmed down, though his breathing was laboured.

Naruto spoke first.

"I don't know what you want, Gaara, but Ayako-chan is our friend, and we will not let you hurt her."

Gaara's killing intent flared up again.

"Don't call her that" he whispered quietly, his voice dangerous. Sasuke and Sakura's sharp ears instantly caught what he had mumbled.

Unfortunately, Naruto didn't.

"Huh? Did you say something about Ayako-ch-MMPH!" Naruto was interrupted by a tendril of sand forcefully shoving itself into the his mouth.

Sakura stepped up bravely.

"Gaara-san, he's right. Over the recent times, Ayako has become a close friend inside our circle of friends. Myself, Kakashi-sensei, Sasuke-kun, and Naruto. We will not let an outsider…"

She trailed off uncertainly, as Sasuke shot her an unreadable look.

Sasuke was uncomfortable with the current situation. His instincts tell him that Sabaku no Gaara and Ayako already knew each other. And that dobe and Sakura were idiots.

Meanwhile, Gaara's aura flashed black at the 'outsider' comment.

"Outsider?" he echoed quietly. His eyes darkened and his sand grew in number, gathering those beneath them.

"W…wait! Gaara!" Ayako stammered. Gaara's eyes flicked over to her. Naruto, being the idiotic but brave blond he was, stepped between them.

"You will not harm Ayako-chan! Look at her! She's scared!"

"Shut up dobe!" Sasuke yelled frantically.

"You...you're scared, Ayako…? I scared you? I scared you like I did the people who stole your ball? You think I'm a monster, like they did?" Gaara wondered out loud.

Ayako bit back a sob.

"N…no…"

"Do you think I will kill you?"

"No! Gaara!"

"Do you hate me now?"

"Stop! Gaara-chan!" Ayako cried out.

Gaara stopped. Team seven watched silently, Naruto and Sakura both wearing confused expressions on their faces. Gaara-chan? Were they missing something?

"Ayako…"

"Stop it! I don't hate! I don't think that you're a monster, and no, I'm not like the idiots who stole my ball!...but I was a bit scared, for a while, when you killed that man…" she choked, her throat tight with emotion.

Gaara's face blanked.

"So you were scared of me…"

Ayako sank back into the tree.

The Kazekage froze. He _scared_ her.

He lost one of his precious people.

Without a word, he turned around and started to walk away brokenly.

* * *

Sorry for short chapter, but I wanted to end it like this for effect. //dramatic pose//… 


	7. Chapter 7

I figured that if I don't tell anyone that I haven't updated for three-quarters of a year, they won't kill me…EEEKKK!!!!

On a side note, is Ayako considered a Mary-Sue? Because she's actually supposed to be an OC! I mean, she's not excessively talented or pretty…or something…so…?

I've decided that Neji should appear in this chapter…but don't worry, it's still GaaraXAyako!

* * *

Chapter 7 

"O-oi…Gaara…?" Naruto said aloud to no one.

Sakura looked confused, and Sasuke stayed silent, watching Ayako for any reaction.

Said brunette was currently chewing on her lips, at a loss for what to do. She seemed to be in a state of shock, her mouth slightly agape and her eyes wide, filling up with tears every few seconds.

After about five minutes of silence, Sakura spoke up, "so…you knew each other?"

Sasuke snorted, and, surprisingly, spoke up.

"Go, we can finish this mission on our own."

Ayako looked at him for a moment, eyes wide, before nodding. She stood up, wiped away her tears, and walked slowly towards the direction Gaara disappeared off to.

"I'm sorry…Gaara-chan…"

Gaara didn't know where he was going. Every step he took seemed to get him nowhere at all. All he could think about was what had happened before, his past, and…and…Ayako's expression…

He felt wetness sliding down his cheeks, and he wiped it with his hand.

"I'm…crying?"

Gaara rarely cried. What was happening to him?

He sat down numbly, unsure of what he was feeling. He held a hand up to his chest. Why did it hurt so much?

The eyes are the window to the soul.

He remembered her eyes. They spoke fear.

When people fear one another, do they not like each other anymore?

Does that mean that Ayako didn't like him anymore?

Did he lose another precious person?

No, he didn't. Ayako was the only precious person he had in his life.

Gaara curled up on the forest bed, hugging himself tightly. He just wanted a precious person, was that too much to ask?

* * *

Ayako looked around the mossy covering of the forest floor, trying to distinguish footprints from holes and whatnot.

She suddenly found that she couldn't focus on anything anymore, as her eyes clouded in tears. Why did she have to go and give him a look that clearly screamed fear? Gaara probably hates her now!

She doubled her speed, not daring to lift her eyes off the ground.

* * *

Neji Hyuuga was currently on a solo C-rank mission in the forest to track down some articles of clothing that had been blown away during the past week, during the winds that came down from the Wind country. Lee and Gai were training, and Tenten was out of the village with her father.

He was probably requested to do this job by no fewer than five people because he possessed the Byakugan. Suddenly, he heard light footsteps. It was either a female or a small boy. He stopped, and took on a defensive stance as it came closer.

He vaguely recognised her as the young lady that had been ordered to live in the Hyuuga Compound per a special request of the Hokage. He relaxed his position.

"Ayako Makura"

Ayako's eyes snapped up when she heard her name.

* * *

She heard a snapping of some object that may have been a twig. Her heart lurched with relief, hope, and dread at the same time. Did Gaara come to look for her? What should she say to him?

"Ayako Makura"

A smooth but monotonous voice stated. This was definitely not Gaara. She raised her head. Who would it be?

It was a boy with long, flowing hair and white eyes. Her own eyes dulled with recognition.

"Neji-san?" she asked, feeling the disappointment to find that it was not Gaara. Neji gave a small nod.

"What are you doing here?" he asked in turn. After all, he was one of those assigned to look after her, and he'll be damned if she gets injured. But was it his imagination? Or didn't she seem too pleased to see him, for some reason.

"Nothing" she replied quietly, trying to walk past him. Neji put his hand on her arm, a serious look in his eyes.

"Makura-san. Remember that I was one of those privileged enough to be assigned to look after to you and making sure that no harm comes to you. Please respect that" he answered.

The girl was silent for a while, then…

"Please let me go, Neji-san" she said quietly. Neji shook his head.

"Please tell me what is wrong. We are here to help" he replied robotically. Ayako sparked slightly with anger.

"Let me go" she repeated. Again, the young Hyuuga shook his head.

"I would be going against my duties, Makura-san"

"I don't care about your damned duties! Let me go, Hyuuga!" she cried shrilly. Neji was about to shake his head again, when sand began to choke him by wrapping itself around his neck and prying his firm grip off Ayako. The brunette's mouth dropped with dread.

"No…"

* * *

Gaara had heard the snapping of twigs, and stopped rocking himself to listen.

"Ayako Makura" he heard first, after a few seconds of silence. His heart pumped faster. Ayako? He could hear the conversation very clearly, indicating that they- Ayako and whoever she was conversing with- was pretty near. Did she come and look for him?

"Neji-san?"

So it was the Hyuuga. The one who competed against Naruto in the chuunin exams. The redhead subconsciously gritted his teeth.

"What are you doing here?" The nerve of him, speaking to her in such a manner! Gaara's sand shifted restlessly.

"Nothing"

A pause, then shuffling- probably feet dragging among fallen leaves.

"Makura-san. Remember that I was one of those privileged enough to be assigned to look after to you and making sure that no harm comes to you. Please respect that"

Gaara stood up, his hands opening and closing into a fist. There was another moment of silence before he heard-

"Please let me go, Neji-san"

"Please tell me what is wrong, we are here to help"

"Let me go"

"I would be going against my duties, Makura-san"

Gaara's feet started to move of their own accord, his eyes with murderous intent in them. How dare he?

"I don't care about your damned duties! Let me go, Hyuuga!"

With speed that Gaara's sand never knew it had, it wrapped itself around Neji's neck and around his hands, pulling off his Ayako.

Wait, _his_ Ayako?

* * *

Ok, so I haven't updated in forever and I haven't died, so I have no excuse at all! You may now start to throw the objects in your hands//Bows// 


	8. Chapter 8

Wai!! FFN wouldn't let me log on for a while…did it happen to everybody?

If there is anyone that's reading this that have put me on author alert, I have now decided that I will furiously work on this story (it won't long folks, this one is going to end soon!) before taking a short break and furiously attempt to finish the other ones (I know! I will keep the quality! Promise! And I'll try to make the chapters long! Or longer! Or as long as I can make them!...yeah?

Edit: Please ignore the above and read my profile...though there's a chance that what's written on my profile wouldn't necessarily happen to this fic, I'm gunna try and finish it - -"

XD

* * *

Chapter eight

* * *

His mind was reeling. 

_His_ Ayako.

Why was he feeling confused? What was this feeling?

He looked at her, ignoring the long-haired Hyuuga, who was choking and turning blue, desperately trying to force the sand away.

Ayako looked right back, before nervously turning her line of vision to Neji. The boy in question had now begun to claw at the sand, trying to force a little bit of air into his lungs.

"G-Gaara?" she tried timidly. Gaara flinched from the tone. Her eyes. He remembered the brown orbs that trembled with fear.

"No" he whispered. Ayako suddenly looked alarmed, forgetting all about Neji. It turned out that she didn't have to worry for much longer, because as soon as the word left his mouth, the sand receded, leaving Neji to fall breathlessly onto the floor.

"Gaara?" she asked uncertainly. What did he mean by 'no'?

The redhead 'thumped' down onto the ground, not caring that it got his clothes dirty. Ayako stood frozen for a moment.

"Don't…" his eyes were wide, fixed on an unsuspecting leaf. Ayako still couldn't move, hoping that what Gaara was going to say next wasn't…

"Don't look at me like that…"

Ayako closed her eyes. Her teeth worried her lips, drawing blood slightly.

"Gaara-"

"Don't say it!" Gaara's voice was all but a whisper, but the words pierced the silence like a knife through flesh. The Makura let a tear roll down her cheek. She started to walk slowly towards him. He didn't notice.

"Gaara…"

"Stop it!" Gaara roared. Ayako saw with growing dread that his shoulders were shaking. Did she do that to him?

"I don't want to hear it" he murmured.

"Gaara…" Ayako sat down next to him, reaching a hand out. The sand shifted restlessly, but Gaara still didn't seem to notice her presence, as though he had already forgotten that she was there.

"I'm not…" Ayako's hand touched his arm. Gaara jerked away as if stung.

"You're not…what?" the brunette asked quietly. Every fibre of her being prayed that Gaara would stop talking.

"_I'm not a monster_" Ayako froze. Gaara wasn't. He wasn't a monster!

Before she knew it, her palm drew back and, when she swung it forward, connected hard. Gaara froze as he crashed into the floor. The slap didn't hurt that much, but it definitely shocked him. Angry tears forced her way out of her eyes.

"Gaara! How dare you!" Gaara's mind started to overload from all of the emotions flowing through him at that moment. The words sounded oddly familiar, as though he had heard them before.

"How could you say that? You're not a monster, you're a human! And don't try to interrupt me!" she yelled effectively stopping whatever Gaara was about to inject into her lecture. Was it a lecture? Lectures had never made Gaara's spirits lift, even if it was just slightly.

"Ayako?" he said quietly, immediately stopping her tirade. She looked at him.

"Yeah?"

"Arigatou…" he said, letting the word roll off his tongue. She stopped, looking at him, surprised. Then, a huge grin broke out on her face.

"U-un…Gaara-chan" she said shyly. There was a short moment of silence, where neither knew what to do. Ayako's eyes darted from the ground to Gaara, then back again. Then, hesitantly, she reached out and enveloped Gaara in a hug. Gaara stiffened.

"Are you…hugging me?" Gaara asked, slightly nervous.

"Nope" Ayako answered. Her voice was chipper, but it held a gentle underlying tone. Gaara frowned, confused.

"I'm huggling you" she clarified.

"H-huggling?" the redhead was confused once again. He had never heard this word before. Ayako nodded.

"Hugging and snuggling. But this would only work if…" she reached out a hand and placed both Gaara's arms around her back. Gaara automatically tightened them.

"Warm…" he muttered. Ayako smiled and held him tighter. This was the Gaara she knew and liked from when they were little. She was glad that Gaara still remembered her. She never forgot him either.

They stayed like that for a while. The time passed slowly, with nothing to interrupt this time that they were spending together since the parting seven years ago. It was peaceful in the forest, with sunlight shining through the canopy of leaves and the occasional rustling of the leaves as the wind blew lightly past them. This place wasn't as bad as it sounds, Ayako realised, as nothing will attack you unless provoked. The silence, though long, was not uncomfortable.

Suddenly, Gaara tensed. Ayako started.

"?"

Gaara shook his head. Neji had woken up.

* * *

The first thing that registered in Neji's mind was that his hair was been rubbed in dirt. So was his face, but that wasn't as important. 

He was apparently staring at a block of brown. He tried looking elsewhere, but as soon as his eyes moved, a dull pain throbbed between them. As his vision came back into focus, he dimly realised that what his eyes were so interested in recognising was a mere tree root.

The next thing he noticed was that his throat felt bruised, and he was having slight difficulty breathing. Why was that? His head started to hurt as he searched through it for what had happened before he had…fainted?

Maybe he should try to find out where he is first.

He waited a bit, before rolling over onto his back. The unexpected movement cause the blood to rush to his head, disabling his ability to see for a few seconds. He sighed when it was over, before opening them.

There was something red, that much was obvious. When he realised the situation, he fought an unmanly gasp.

Gaara. Sabaku no Gaara, bloodthirsty monster of the Red Sand, had one of the Hyuuga's important guests in his clutches. He must rescue her now.

Perhaps the fall (or the lack of oxygen) ad addled his head a bit.

It was clear to all that were present as Neji narrowed his eyes and lunged at them.

* * *

…I lied…I'm sorry…//goes and angsts in corner//… 

To all that complained: Yes, I KNOW that this story drags...suman...na?

- -"

And please note: I am the type who can only write drabbles. If you have a look at most of my stories, you will note that even my longer ones are event skips with the dividing bar thingamajig…

…

…in short, I can't write long stories…I can only join little bits of drabbles together.

…but, this chapter is a bit longer than usual? XD

…though not by that much (it is for me though…), so you probably won't notice…

Ah, yeah…I was looking at the new top bar thingamajig of FFN…and I was like, 'who the heck is Justin?'…and I sat there for 3 and a half minutes trying to figure out who Justin was, when suddenly I realised, 'oh! It's Just In!'…I'm turning dumb!!! Tasukede!!!!


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